Château Thivin

It
is no surprise that Château Thivin is the benchmark domaine of the Côte de
Brouilly; everything about it is exceptional. Built in the fifteenth century on
an ancient volcano which juts out steeply into the valley below, Thivin is the
oldest estate on Mont Brouilly. Even more important, however, is its tremendous
success since farmer Zaccharie Geoffray purchased the château with its two
hectares of land at auction in 1877. His son Claude expanded the property over
the next few decades, and his son, also named Claude, boosted the prestige of
the zone in the face of the Great Depression when he played a pivotal role in
the creation of the Côte de Brouilly appellation. With his wife Yvonne, he also
helped to bring greater recognition to the entire region with the establishment
of the Maison du Beaujolais in 1953. Over the years the family continued to
promote the appellation, receiving many influential artists and journalists at
the château. The French novelist, Colette, wrote admiringly of her visit to
Thivin, for example. In 1976, Richard Olney took Kermit to visit on their first
wine trip together. It was Olney’s
top recommendation in the whole of the Beaujolais region. The current generation of the Geoffray
family continues their tradition. Today their grandnephew Claude, his wife
Evelyne, and their son Claude-Edouard continue the tradition as staunch and
proud defenders of the terroir of the
Côte de Brouilly.

Thivin’s
Côte de Brouilly parcels are predominantly south-facing and are planted
entirely with Gamay vines that average 50 years of age. The soil is plowed and
composted regularly while cover crops are left between some rows to encourage
microbiotic activity. Absolutely no insecticides are used. On a slope with a
grade of 48% and crumbly surface, implementing these techniques is essential to
safeguard the soil from erosion, but it isn’t easy! Each section of the
vineyard is harvested and vinified separately to preserve the unique
characteristics afforded by variations in exposure and altitude. Even the
estate’s vineyards in the Brouilly appellation are planted on a moderately
steep hillside of decomposed pink granite, while most of the appellation is
planted on the flat valley floor. Traditional whole-cluster fermentation keeps
the characteristic fruity qualities of Gamay, after which the grapes are
transferred to cuves by gravity
without being crushed. Each vintage spends a few months in large oak foudres before bottling. The resulting
wines, according to Kermit, resemble “…a country squire who is not afraid to
get his boots muddy. Handsome, virile, earthy, and an aristocrat.”

Technical Information

Wine

Blend

Vine Age

Soil Type

Vineyard Area*

Beaujolais Villages Blanc “Cuvée Marguerite”

Chardonnay

N/A

Clay, Limestone

.80 ha

Beaujolais Blanc “Clos de Rochebonne”

Chardonnay

Planted in 2009

Clay, limestone

.80 ha

Beaujolais Villages Rosé

Gamay Noir à jus blanc

50 years old

Pink granite and sand

1 ha

Brouilly “Reverdon”

Gamay Noir

45 years

Pink granite, sand

7 ha

Côte de Brouilly

Gamay Noir

Average of 50 years

Blue volcanic rock comprised of plagioclase and biotite

8.3 ha

Côte de Brouilly “Cuvée Zaccharie”

Gamay Noir

40 - 90 years

Clay and volcanic rock (composed of Diorite and Porphyry)

N/A

* "ha" = hectares; one hectare equals roughly two and a half acres

VITICULTURE / VINIFICATION

• In 2008, the domaine began a conversion to organic viticulture that will be finished around 2020

•
Biodiversity is
achieved by placing hay around the edges of the vineyards and herbs and flowers
are planted between rows

•
Natural
composts serve as a natural fertilizer

•
Regular plowing
aerates the soils

•
All grapes are
harvested by hand, in mid-September

•
All parcels
undergo separate vinifications

•
Gravity-fed
fermentation cuves

•
Traditional
whole-cluster vinifications

•
Partial
de-stemming

Beaujolais Villages
Blanc “Cuvée Marguerite”:

•
Vineyards
planted on a slope with eastern sun exposure and good drainage

•
Half of the
cuvée is aged in stainless steel, the other half in oak barrels

•
Cuvée is
bottled in the springtime following the harvest

Beaujolais
Blanc “Clos de Rochebonne”:

•
Vinified in 1 to 10 year old barrels

•
Aged on the lees for 8 months

Beaujolais Rosé:

•
Direct press,
skins macerate with the juice for one day

• Completes malolactic fermentation

•
Vinified in
cool, temperature-controlled stainless steel tanks

Brouilly "Reverdon":

•
Sourced from the Reverdon sector of Mont Brouilly, an area known for producing wines of great finesse

• Eastern sun exposure on a moderate slope, facing Mont Brouilly

• Whole cluster fermentation during 8 days

• Raised in concrete tank for 8 months

Côte de Brouilly:

•
Vineyards
situated on steep slopes with a 48% grade

•
Exposed to the
South, East, and Southeast

•
Fermentation
lasts from 6-12 days

•
Ages in oak foudres for six months before bottling

•
Drinks well in
its youth and develops beautifully 3-8 years after the vintage

Côte de Brouilly
“Cuvée Zaccharie”:

•
A blend of
their oldest vines from the two parcels “La Chapelle” (South) and “Godeffroy”
(East), excellent sun exposure

•
Vinification
lasts from 13-15 days

•
Ages for 1-5
years in 228-L oak barrels, of which only 10% is new oak